


The Huntsman's Wolf

by hamelott



Category: The Librarians (TV 2014)
Genre: Gen, ezekiel is much more wolfy than he was in the show, his only friend is an owl, huntsman!jake, it's a happy fairytale ending, not actually a relationship yet but don't you worry, plus jake is a recluse, the others start to actually show up in the second chapter!, werewolf!ezekiel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-22
Updated: 2017-02-19
Packaged: 2018-09-19 03:19:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 15,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9415796
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hamelott/pseuds/hamelott
Summary: Received an anonymous request from tumblr asking for Jake as the huntsman and Ezekiel as a werewolf that he captured but can't kill, and it somehow turned into so much more.





	1. Chapter 1

Jacob lived in the woods by himself. He was a recluse in a sense, so he didn't mind spending his days with just the animals around him and the trees. Though, unfortunately, he'd made quite the name for himself as a good huntsman in a nearby village. Because of that, he had many people trying to enter his woods to request his service. Whether it was to kill a bear that was raiding the town at night or simply find the biggest turkey he could for the town feast, Jacob did it all. For some reason, he just couldn't say no. 

Recently he'd been given a...strange task. Apparently there’d been something lurking around the outskirts of the town, always running off into his forest when anybody approached it. Some people had described it as a large wolf-like creature with fur as dark as the night sky and amber eyes that practically glowed when you were able to get close enough to see them. Apparently, this creature was spooking the villagers, and he’d been enlisted to capture and kill it as quickly as he possibly could.

A few days later, Jacob was walking through the woods. He had his crossbow clutched in his hands and his owl, Scout, was in the skies, checking Jacob’s traps ahead of him. This was a constant routine of theirs as Scout worked much like hunting falcon. Jacob had trained him from a hatchling, and he was probably the only other living being Jacob got along with well.

Jacob followed the path until he stopped, listening. Along with the regular night sounds of crickets chirping and leaves rustling in the wind, there was a foreign sound that got louder and louder as Jacob approached one of the traps he’d set up. It sounded like a mix between growling and struggling. Jacob grinned to himself as Scout raced back towards him, giving off a screech that confirmed Jacob’s thoughts.

He’d caught the beast.

Jacob raced along the path until he came upon the clearing in the forest where he’d set up his trap and stopped, shocked, to find a thing in the metal jaws of his contraption. 

It was a wolf. Or it had features of a wolf. Black fur and amber eyes as the locals described it, but it was more than that. There was pain on its face, and its front legs worked more like arms than legs, scrabbling at the sharp metal that had captured its back hind leg. It was humanesque to a point that made Jacob feel uncomfortable.

Scout, who had landed on a nearby branch, let out a screech that made Jacob jump and made the creature’s head whip around; its eyes landed on Jacob. Its lips pulled back in a long snarl, ears flattening against its head. It tried to scramble away from him, and Jacob couldn’t help a wince as it tore apart its leg all the more.

“Slow down there,” he said, trying to sound soothing but it probably came out gruff. He went to raise his hand in a comforting gesture and that’s when he remembered his crossbow. That’s when he remembered the job he’d set out to do. He sighed. “Look, calm down, alright? Stupid thing; you’re gonna make yourself bleed out.”

Despite his effort to be calming, he was slowly raising the crossbow. The creature’s intelligent eyes were watching his hands. It began to pull at its leg more, trying to get away. Jacob hesitated, and he realized he couldn’t do it. Whatever this thing was, it wasn’t just an animal. It was something different. The townspeople would probably kill him for letting it get away, but he felt no doubt in his mind as he threw away the crossbow and started approaching the beast.

It stopped in its movements, eyeing Jacob wearily. He growled to himself. “Look, this is dumb, but I can’t do this. C’mere, lemme get you outta that thing.”

The creature obviously understood his words and stilled. Jacob approached wearily but as he got to the trap, the creature just watched him as he slowly undid it and released the beast’s leg. He looked at it again. “Look, just come with me and I can heal you up and-.”

The creature ignored him and pushed past him, knocking him to the forest floor. Jacob watched, a little dazed, as it took off into the woods. The only indication that it’d really been there was the branches it’d pushed through shaking and the blood it’d left on its trap.

Jacob sighed to himself and shook his head, getting up and preparing himself to go disable the rest of his traps.

~~~

The next morning, Jacob was woken up to insistent knocking on his door. He quickly got up and inwardly prepared himself for Jenkins, the town’s mayor, or even Eve, the town’s sheriff, coming to ask him why he hadn’t captured the beast yet. He was trying to think of an excuse or even a story as he opened the door.

Then he was brought to a pause. Instead of Jenkins or Eve, a man younger than both of them stood in front of him. He had dark, black hair and dark brown eyes that were flecked with gold in the rising sun. He was leaning heavily against Jacob’s cabin and that’s when Jacob noticed his leg, bloody and torn to shreds.

The man gave him a smirking grin. “Hey there…does your offer still stand?”

Jacob’s eyes widened as he quickly understood. “Y-you were that…beast?”

“Beast is such a harsh word…” the man said. “But, uh, yeah…that’s me. I also go by Ezekiel.”

“But…how?” Jacob asked, still too astonished to actually let the man in to take care of him.

“It’s a really long story, and I’ll probably bleed out before I finish it,” Ezekiel said, and Jacob noticed his breath was getting shallower.

“R-right.” He nodded. He reached out, pulled the man into his house, and glanced around the woods, just to check they were completely alone before he shut the door.

Jacob was wrapping up Ezekiel’s leg when he finally spoke again. “It’s a disease, really. It’s not something anybody actually wants. I’ve been told many names…lycanthropy…man-wolf…the most popular one is werewolf. I don’t really know how it happened. All I do know is I got bit by one of ‘em one night and now I can’t stop turning into them. Villages are terrified of me, people send out search parties to hunt me down, but you’re the only one who’s ever been that close.” He frowned, looking at Jacob. “And then you let me go.”

Jacob shrugged, starting to put away his supplies and thinking of some sort of food he could cook up quick. “You obviously weren’t what people thought you were. You were scared of me even in that…form. You could’ve ripped me to shreds had I gotten close enough, but it didn’t even occur to you.” He met Ezekiel’s eyes. “I couldn’t kill you after that.”

“Oh,” Ezekiel murmured, and he still frowned as if he didn’t understand. He suddenly shook his head and said, “Look, I should be getting out of here. I’ll go somewhere else…maybe deeper into the forest. Thank you for all you’ve done. I would be dead if it weren’t for you.”

“Wait, hold on,” Jacob said, his hand wrapping around Ezekiel’s arm to keep him in place. “You don’t…you don’t have to go. This forest, I’m the only one who lives here. None of the villagers dare to come in here unless they’re lookin’ for me. You could be safe here.”

Ezekiel glanced at Jacob’s hand wrapped around his bicep and then met Jacob’s eyes. He had a tiny smile playing on his lips. “Are you serious? You just met me…and I could be dangerous. I still don’t know the full extent to this.”

Jacob shrugged. “Then I’ll help you figure it out.” He sighed but even he could feel his cheeks getting a little warmer. “You just seem like you need help. So here I am…offering it to you.”

Slowly, Ezekiel nodded. “Yeah…okay. Sure. I’ll stay.”

Jacob grinned. “C’mon, lemme introduce you to the dog. You can talk to him, right?”

Ezekiel frowned. “Oh, I can tell I’m gonna hate you already.”

“What was that a dumb question?”

“I should’ve torn you to shreds when I had the chance.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello there! This was really fun to write as it's not my usual thing to write, but it was a heck of a lot of fun!! Special shout out to the anonymous requester for this fun and interesting fic! I hope you all enjoyed!!


	2. Introductions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jacob's horrible at lying, and Ezekiel doesn't really help him because it's way too funny.

Jacob woke up a few mornings after meeting Ezekiel to someone absolutely banging on his door. He grumbled to himself as he quickly got out of bed and yanked on some clothes. He stumbled through his cabin shouting, “I’m coming! I get it!”

When he reached the door, he pulled it open to find a very flustered Eve Baird. Her hair was a mess, and she had dark bruises underneath her eyes from lack of sleep but she still greeted him with, “Good morning, Mr. Stone.”

“Mornin’,” Jacob mumbled back, trying to peek over her shoulder for villagers with pitchforks and torches on the hunt for Ezekiel, which made no sense but it still had him paranoid. When he found none of that, he met her eyes again and tried to give her a small smile. “What can I do for you?”

“Well, you see,” Eve said, and Jacob could tell by the tone of her voice that she was frustrated. He’d known her for quite a while as she was the one who let him put up his cabin when he’d first come across the forest, and she was the one the townspeople enlisted to trek into the woods to find him when they had need of him, which had been increasing more recently for some reason he didn’t quite know. “I’ve been receiving some complaints of a young man sneaking into people’s gardens and, well…stealing their flowers. And I don’t mean picking them. This person has been digging them up as if to replant them again. I’m only coming to you about this because this man has been seen sneaking off into your forest, and I wasn’t sure if you’d seen anybody recently.”

Jacob instantly thought of the garden Ezekiel had begun planting a few evenings ago and couldn’t help his face getting warm. He’d never known he was such a bad liar until now. “Um…no. I’ve not seen anybody snooping around here. Maybe he lives deeper in the forest. I can go search for him, if you’d like?”

Eve shook her head. “No need. I’m sure the people can just replant their flowers. Just let me know if you…”

She slowly trailed off, eyes staring at something past Jacob. He turned and saw Ezekiel limping through the living room. When he noticed them, he stopped and raised his hand in a confused wave. Jacob’s eyes widened as he turned back to Eve. “That’s my dog trainer.”

He heard Ezekiel scoff behind him, but Eve’s attention was back on him, eyebrow slowly raising.

“Belle had her puppies, and I don’t really have the time to train them, you see,” Jacob said, hoping this would convince Eve but pretty sure it wouldn’t. “So I hired this young man to do that for me. He’s been here the whole time…training the pups.”

Eve glanced back at Ezekiel, to Jacob, back to Ezekiel again, and finally back to Jacob one last time. “Right…well, I must be going.” She nodded past Jacob. “It was nice to meet you.”

“You too,” Ezekiel said back, still sounding confused.

Eve turned back to Jacob. “Thank you for your time, Mr. Stone. Keep an eye out for that flower thief, would you?”

Jacob nodded swiftly. “O-of course…no problem.”

As she turned back into the forest, Jacob shut the door behind her and heard, “Dog trainer? Really, mate?”

Jacob turned around to face him, glaring. “Why are you stealing the villagers’ flowers?”

Ezekiel shrugged, limping into the kitchen and opening Jacob’s store cabinets. He pulled out a piece of dried meat and began to gnaw at it. “This place it too bland. You needed some color. Where else was I supposed to get flowers?”

“We live in a forest,” Jacob growled at him. 

“Whatever.” Ezekiel frowned. “Seriously though, you’ve gotta lay off the dog jokes.”

“Then lay off the villagers’ flowers!”

“Fair enough.”  
~~~  
Jacob was in the front of his cabin chopping wood when Flynn approached him. Flynn lived in the nearby village and served as the town’s….well, Jacob wasn’t really sure what he did. He knew Flynn was a smart man that enjoyed figuring things out, reading books, and testing any and everything he could get his hands on. Jacob respected him greatly.

“Good afternoon, Jacob,” Flynn said. He looked a little haggard, and Jacob knew that was probably from his walk through the woods. Flynn really did despise hiking.

Jacob set down his axe and wiped the sweat off his forehead with his sleeve. He nodded to Flynn. “Afternoon. What can I help you with, Mr. Carsen?”

“Oh, well, you see,” Flynn said quickly, nearly tripping over a tree root to get closer to him. “I’m here to pick up that sample of the, uh, Phallus indusiatus or the veiled lady mushroom.”

Jacob nodded. “Right, right. I’ve got some in my garden in the back. Follow me.”

Flynn began following him around the side of the cabin. He looked around the woods in interest. “Eve mentioned that you have pups. Where are they wandering around at?”

“Uh,” Jacob mumbled, trying to think of an excuse because the truth was his dog definitely did not have any pups. “They ran off, actually. It’s too bad. They would’ve been a strong litter.”

Flynn hummed apologetically. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

Jacob nodded but didn’t say anything as they rounded the house to reveal Ezekiel’s impressive garden. It held at least twenty different sorts of flowers and spanned a majority of the small clearing that was Jacob’s backyard before disappearing into more forest. He pointed to the far side of it. “They stared growing over there, by the azaleas-.”

“Hey, Jacob, where do you keep the-?” Flynn and Jacob both spun around to find Ezekiel. His hands were muddy, and he held a canister of water in his hands. He grinned when he saw Flynn. “Uh, hi there.”

Flynn opened his mouth as if he were about to ask a question, but Jacob interrupted him. “Uh, Flynn, this is Ezekiel. He’s my…gardener.”

Flynn’s eyes lit up, and he held a hand out to Ezekiel disregarding the fact that Ezekiel’s were obviously a little busy. “Oh, nice to meet you! You must be the master behind this masterpiece.” He gestured to the garden as a whole. “You know, I was a little astounded when I’d heard that Jacob Stone had created a flower garden, but this makes a lot more sense. I must say, I’m very impressed.”

Jacob, a little offended, said, “Yeah, well, whatever. Like I said, the veiled ladies are over there, Flynn.”

“Right,” Flynn said, turning back towards Jacob. “I’ll just grab those and be on my way. Thank you very much, Mr. Stone.” He glanced at Ezekiel. “And you too. It was nice to meet you.”

Ezekiel nodded to him. “Uh, yeah, you too.”

Flynn began to pick his way across the garden as Ezekiel turned a frown on Jacob. “Gardener? Y’know, you’ve got the flimsiest lies that I’ve ever seen a man give.”

“Oh yeah,” Jacob said to him, watching Flynn excitedly reach his mushrooms, “what would you have said?”

Ezekiel shrugged next to him. “I don’t know, but it would’ve been better than gardener.” He paused, beginning to drip some water on the flowers next to him. “Maybe cousin?”

“You have an accent, Ezekiel.”

“Hey, if people will believe dog trainer for invisible puppies, I’m pretty sure they’ll believe anything.  
~~~  
A few days later, Jacob found himself taking Ezekiel through a tour of the forest. Scout was flying above them, but Ezekiel had told him if they took along Belle he wouldn’t go because he knew the dog jokes would be too much. 

They’d just reached the creek that served as a line between the forest and the town when they ran into Cassandra. Cassandra served as the town’s healer. She had the remarkable ability to help cure any ailments with her herbs and remedies. Some people described even described her methods as magical, but Jacob thought it was just a big compliment.

When she saw them, she grinned. “Oh, well hello, Jacob. It’s strange to see you this close to town.”

Jacob nodded to her. “Uh, yeah, just taking my, uh, cousin, Ezekiel, for a tour of the forest.”

He heard Ezekiel snicker next to him but refused to look at him.

Cassandra frowned. “Your cousin? When did he get here?”

“Oh, you know,” Jacob said, shrugging, “few weeks ago. He’s been staying with me so that’s why you haven’t met him yet.”

Cassandra slowly nodded. “Right, of course.” She nodded to Ezekiel. “It’s nice to meet you, I’m Cassandra.”

When Ezekiel didn’t say anything in reply, Jacob turned towards him, frowning. Ezekiel was grinning, but he shrugged helplessly at Jacob and pointed towards him mouth. Jacob quickly got what he was saying and nearly shouted, “Oh, right!” He turned back to Cassandra. “He’s mute. He’s my mute cousin. He can’t speak.”

Cassandra frowned. “Oh, that’s so sad. I’m sorry to hear that. How do you two communicate?”

Jacob glanced at him, and Ezekiel shrugged. Jacob turned back to Cassandra again. “I just kinda know…I guess.”

Cassandra’s frown disappeared into a smile. “Oh, well that’s sweet.” They all heard someone shout her name from the village. It sounded strangely like Eve. Cassandra nodded to them again. “Well, I must be off. It was good to see you again, Jacob. And it was nice to meet you, Ezekiel.”

She turned away from them and began walking back towards the village. Jacob glanced at Ezekiel. “Seriously?”

Ezekiel gave him a cheeky grin. “What? You did mention the accent.”

Jacob sighed. “You’re ridiculous.” He glanced around. “Here, let’s go this way next.”

Ezekiel followed him silently for a while before he said, “She’s pretty.”

Jacob shrugged, pushing a branch out of his way. “Yeah, I suppose.”

“Have you ever, I don’t know, courted her?” Ezekiel asked. He had an odd tone to his voice, but Jacob couldn’t quite place it.

Despite this, he laughed. “Cassandra? No, never.”

“Why not?” 

“She’s not really my type of person.”  
~~~  
The sun was setting, and Jacob was arriving home. He had a deer slung over his shoulder, and when he threw it to the ground, it was a great relief. One of these days, he was going to have to enlist Ezekiel’s help with the hunting. Curiously, he wondered if the wolf was any good at hunting. Or if it just ate and killed on the spot. He’d have to find that out.

“Good evening, Mr. Stone.” 

Jacob looked up, startled, to find Jenkins standing at his doorstep. Jenkins was the leader of the village, and Jacob knew him pretty well, almost as well as he knew Eve. He grinned at him, nodding his head in greeting. “Evening, Jenkins. What can I do for you?”

Jenkins stepped away from the door. “Nothing, really. I just decided to come out here and see if the rumors were true.”

Jacob frowned at him. “What rumors?”

“That you’ve taken in a housemate,” Jenkins said. “I’ve heard all sorts of tales. Dog trainer, gardener, and even cousin”

Jacob felt the back of his neck heat up and ran a hand through his already mussed up hair. “Oh, uh, yeah…that’d be Ezekiel.”

“Is he here at the moment? I knocked on the door, but nobody answered,” Jenkins said, glancing around into the forest. 

“Uh, no,” Jacob said, shaking his head. “He’s probably not. He enjoys going on nightly walks, you see. He’s probably doing that now.”

“Right,” Jenkins said, nodding. There was a long pause as Jenkins stood there, watching the forest, and Jacob watched him. It was finally broken when Jenkins said, “Mr. Stone, I don’t mind you sharing your home with another, but this is still my land, as you know, and I like to know the people who inhabit it. I would just like to be clear on your relationship with him. Is he an apprentice? A Gardner? Family?”

Jacob sighed. “You’re right…I’m sorry.” He rubbed the back of his neck, thinking. He could only come up with one, true answer and, for some reason, it made him smile to himself. “He’s a just a friend that lives with me, I guess.”

Jenkins nodded curtly to him. “Right. Well, I must be going. It was nice seeing you again. You should visit us more often and bring your friend along.”

“Right,” Jacob said, nodding. “I will.”

Later when Jacob was sitting at his table, cutting up deer meat, the door swung open and Ezekiel came in. He walked over and slumped into the chair next to Jacob. “No change tonight.” He sighed. “I don’t get this thing. I wish it were consistent. Maybe there’s just a pattern to it that I just haven’t seen yet.”

Jacob frowned sympathetically at him but passed over a knife, putting him to work. Ezekiel sat up and joined him but kept talking. “I passed a man on my way back. Old and rich, from the looks of it. Know him?”

Jacob nodded. “Sounds like Jenkins, the village’s mayor. He’s nice. He stopped by to ask me about you. Apparently you’re all the rave in the village.”

Ezekiel smirked. “Of course I am.” There was a pause before he asked, “What’d you tell him?”

Jacob shrugged. “You’re a friend.”

Ezekiel grinned. “I like that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! So I decided to add on to this little universe. I'm not sure if I'll add more or when, but just know that if I do, it probably won't be in a orderly fashion. This is just going to be more like a collection of stories and not one big book. But, I do really enjoy this little world and I'm not quite ready to give it up just yet...


	3. A Backstory

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ezekiel wants to know about Jacob's past, and Jacob can't seem to refuse him...

“So, why are you out here?” 

Jacob glanced up to find Ezekiel staring at him with a curios look on his face. Jacob considered the question for a moment before he sighed and looked back at what he was working on. He nodded towards the leather-bound notebook in Ezekiel’s hands. “Shouldn’t you be figuring out your thing?”

Ezekiel snorted. “My thing? You mean my wolf?”

Jacob shrugged, not looking at him. “Whatever you’re calling it. I thought you wanted to figure out if it worked as a cycle or had a pattern or something.”

“I’m bored.” He enunciated this by throwing the book across the room and getting up. He came over to Jacob and picked up the basket he’d been weaving. Ezekiel had made fun of Jacob for it earlier but now he set it down gently nearby. He dragged a chair up to Jacob and sat down in front of him. “Don’t think you’re going to get out of my question.”

Jacob sighed again, shaking his head. “I was working on that-.”

“Jacob,” Ezekiel interrupted him. Jacob slowly met his eyes and instantly knew he wouldn’t be able to refuse this. There was something about Ezekiel’s eyes that made Jacob unable to refuse him just about anything. He had decided he wouldn’t look too far into it for as long as he could. “You can trust me, you know that? Just as much as I can trust you.”

“It’s a long story,” Jacob warned him. 

Ezekiel shrugged, leaning back in his chair. “I’ve got time; there’s not gonna be a change tonight. I figured out the pattern already.”

“Of course you did.”

“Story time, please.”  
~~~  
Jacob ran into the first village he could find. There were people wandering around in the street but none of them would look at him. He was holding his arm close to his chest with his other hand, and his nose was bleeding. He stumbled around, eyes hazy but searching for some sort of healer or store where he could find medical supplies.

He didn’t even notice the person in front of him until there were hands on his shoulders. He glanced up and squinted; he found dark brown eyes filled with concern. He looked up more and found brown hair that was sticking out in all directions. Then he noticed the voice. “-okay? Hey, you with me? Your eyes just got a little more focused there. Are you, ah, are you okay? What do you need?”

Jacob opened his mouth to ask for a healer but all that came out was, “Your hand is on my dislocated shoulder.”

The hands instantly jumped off his shoulder as if they’d been burnt. “Oh, oh! I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”

Jacob shook his head and muttered, “S’fine. I need a healer…please.”

“Right!” the boy shouted. “Of course you do. Come on, this way.”

This time one of his hands gripped his elbow and turned Jacob back around, walking as fast as Jacob was able to. All the way, he was talking. “I’m Flynn, by the way. I live in town. I didn’t always used to, though. I lived in a bigger town growing up; well, it was more of a kingdom type of town. Big, you know. The healer’s name is Cassandra. She’s the best in her class. Or, at least, that I’ve seen. She’s like magic-.”

“Mr. Carsen.”

Flynn pulled up to a stop and turned them around again. Jacob lifted his head to find an older, middle-aged man stepping towards them. His eyebrows were furrowed in the same frown as his lips were. “Who is this?”

“Oh,” Flynn said and then paused, “I don’t…actually know.”

“And where are you taking him?” the man asked. 

Flynn brightened at that. “To Cassandra! He needs help.”

The man nodded. “Obviously. Allow me to join you.”

“Of course, Jenkins,” Flynn said, nodding. He guided Jacob around again, and they finally reached a building. He whispered to Jacob, “That’s Jenkins. He’s the town leader.”

Jacob nodded, but he could only barely hear him. They walked through the door, and Jacob was instantly hit with a hundred different scents all at once. He blinked through the hazy air and found a flash of red hair. He heard a girl’s voice ask, “Flynn? Jenkins? Who’s this?”

Flynn guided him to a table and sat him there, saying, “We don’t know, actually. He needs help though.”

“Are you up for offering to give him it, Ms. Cillian?” Jenkins asked, closing the door behind them.

He heard the girl say, “Of course,” and then there were bright blue eyes in his view. She had a sweet smile on her face. “Hi, there. I’m Cassandra. I know I look young, but I promise you can trust me.”

Jacob nodded. “I trust ya.”

A few hours later, Jacob was sat in Flynn’s home. Jenkins, Cassandra, Flynn, and a girl named Eve sat across from him. He was shoveling stew in his mouth as politely as he could. His arm was held in a sling, alleviating the strain on his formally-dislocated shoulder. 

“So,” the girl Eve said, eyeing him curiously, “just who are you?”

“Jacob,” Jacob told her, quickly swallowing his mouthful of stew. “I’m seventeen. I come from a nearby town.”

“And why are you here now?” Jenkins asked him.

Jacob met his eyes quickly and then looked away, to Flynn. Flynn gave him a little, encouraging nod, so Jacob said, “Uh, I’m runnin’ away. I’ll get through your town quickly. Though I really appreciate all of your help!”

“Why are you running?” both Cassandra and Flynn asked. They both looked equally as concerned for him. Cassandra added, “And why were you so beat up?”

Jacob felt his face growing warm at the interrogation, but he knew he owed these people. “M-my father runs the village I come from, but he’s not exactly a…gentle or caring leader. H-he has his task force that goes around the town, collecting too many taxes, harming the townspeople that can’t or won’t pay…honestly they’ll start up fights with whoever they want to.”

“Your father is Isaac,” Jenkins said knowingly. “I’ve met him before.”

Jacob nodded. “Yeah, well, then you know he only likes it when he has his way. I refused to join his group. I told him I wouldn’t help him harm innocent people. He didn’t like that. I became the new target, so I ran. They got to me, but I was able to fight my way through them and make it here.”

“That’s horrible,” Flynn said, his head slowly shaking. 

Jacob shrugged. “It’s better now. I’m away from it. I’ll find a place where I can build my own home, maybe in some woods somewhere.”

“We have woods here!” Cassandra piped up. She then glanced sheepishly at Jenkins. “Of course, if you you’re willing to let him stay there, Mr. Jenkins.”

Jenkins was contemplating him slowly. Eventually, he nodded. “I do have land that surrounds this town that we have no need of. You could build a house out there. Hunt and live your life while staying away from your father and his men. If the town would have need of you, we could call you for help.”

Jacob quickly nodded. “Y-yes, I would. If you let me stay out there, I’d do whatever you needed me to.”

Jenkins gave him a curt nod and got to his feet. “Ms. Baird can give you a tour, help you scout the land for a good place to set a foundation. I’m sure Mr. Carsen wouldn’t mind you staying with him.”

Flynn met Jacob’s eyes and gave him a small smile. “I wouldn’t mind…no.”

“Then it is settled,” Jenkins said. He glanced at Jacob and said, “Welcome, Mr. Stone. I look forward to getting to know you better.”

“Th-thank you, Mr. Jenkins!” Jacob called after him. “I’ll make sure you won’t regret it!”  
~~~  
“And I’ve been here ever since,” Jacob finished. “And the town has used me when they needed me. And I’ve remained friends with Flynn, Cassandra, Eve, and Jenkins ever since. I don’t see them much, to be fair, but it’s a strong enough bond that we don’t need to.”

“Your father,” Ezekiel murmured. “I…I didn’t know.”

Jacob waved a hand at him, getting up. “It’s nothing. It’s part of my past. I don’t even know him anymore.” He stretched and said, “I’m going to go to bed. Don’t stay up too late; I’m taking you for a hunt tomorrow.”

He was about to step around Ezekiel when his hand wrapping around Jacob’s wrist stopped him. He glanced down to see those damn eyes looking up at him. “You’re very brave, you know? You’re not afraid of me, and you weren’t afraid of him.” Ezekiel bit his lip, as if trying to refrain from saying something. His hand slid down Jacob’s wrist and curled around his hand. “I’m happy to have met you. I’m proud to be your friend.”

Jacob met his gaze and held it for a long time. He hadn’t been lying when he said his father no longer held stock over him but hearing those words from Ezekiel…they did something to him. They meant something to him, for some reason. He was happy to have met Ezekiel too. 

“Thank you,” Jacob said. He squeezed Ezekiel’s hand. “C’mon…you need to get some sleep.”

“I sleep out here…” Ezekiel said, confused frown on his face.

Jacob hauled him up. “C’mon, Ezekiel.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there! It's been a while, but this is the first day since chapter 2 that I've had the opportunity to write! I wanted to give Jacob a little backstory and how he met the others and this is what came out of it! (also, uh, i don't know what's going on with past-jake and flynn but idk i think i'm also here for it; don't worry though, present jake is absolutely enamored with ezekiel)


	4. Another One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jacob asks for Ezekiel's past. He never realized the darkness Ezekiel carries with him behind his soft eyes and kind smile...

Jacob and Ezekiel were lying down on a hill. They were a mile out from the forest in a grass plain where they had a clear view of the sky as the sun was setting. To his side, Ezekiel was panting heavily, and Jacob held a smug smirk on his face.

“You cheated,” Ezekiel puffed at him.

Jacob laughed. “Of course you’d say that. You just can’t admit that I very clearly beat you up this hill.”

“How in the world are you so fit?” Ezekiel whined. Jacob rolled his head and just stared at him until Ezekiel nodded. “Right…you live off the land in a forest you walk through every day. I guess it makes sense. But I’m part wolf!”

“Yeah,” Jacob said, “you’re wolf only part of the time.” He paused then, thinking. Eventually he said, “Hey, you never did tell me how you got bit.”

“Oh,” Ezekiel mumbled, looking away from Jacob and up to the sky. “Right…that.”

Jacob frowned and said, “You don’t have to tell me. I just figured…I told you about my past. I mean, that doesn’t mean you owe me anything! I just thought that I – that we – were okay with telling each other this type of stuff – personal stuff. If you don’t want to-.”

“Jacob,” Ezekiel cut him off, a small smile on his face, “it’s okay. I’ll tell you.” Jacob gave him a look and opened his mouth to say something more, but Ezekiel beat him to it. “I want to tell you. It just isn’t a thing I’ve actually told anybody.”

“You can tell me anything you want,” Jacob reassured him.

Ezekiel glanced at him. “Yeah…I know.”  
~~~  
Ezekiel Jones was the youngest of five kids. His mother and father had wanted a good, strong family to take care of the family land when they inevitably passed away. Unfortunately, that’s all they wanted kids for and their kids knew it too. Ezekiel, being the youngest, had always been the odd one out. When it came to his siblings, they didn’t think he could do any of the work by himself. This led his parents to come to the same conclusions, and they all babied Ezekiel. None of them really respected him, even as he got older and stronger. It led to a tentative relationship waiting to snap between Ezekiel and the rest of his family.

When Ezekiel was fourteen, the nearby village kept losing villagers to the night. They’d all go to sleep and when they woke up, one of their neighbors was gone and their body was never to be seen again. 

Ezekiel’s father wasn’t too concerned about it as he figured they were far enough away from any danger. And if the danger did come to them, they could take care of whatever it was; he was too prideful to think otherwise. Ezekiel wasn’t as sure as the rest of his family, and he tried to tell them, but they simply laughed him off and continued on with their lives.

When the first villager kid was lost, Ezekiel snuck the hunting knife from his father’s bedside and kept it under his cot. 

Months later, Ezekiel woke up to the sound of his mother’s screams. They were sudden and shrill and just as quickly as they started, they were cut off. Ezekiel grabbed his knife when he heard his father’s screams. 

Ezekiel, terrified, had stayed huddled in his cot, knife clutched in his hands as he heard each one of his family’s screams being cut off. When he heard the heavy shuffle of feet just outside his door, he leapt up and ran to his window, desperately trying to undo the latch and crawl out.

His door slowly creaked open, but Ezekiel already had one leg swung outside, the cool air snaking its way up his sleep-trousers. He turned and could’ve screamed if his lungs were actually capable of taking in breath.

In his doorway stood a wolf. Its fur was the color of the red autumn leaves. Its eyes were brown and dull, but they held a hunger in them. Its front legs hung by its sides like arms, and the way it lifted its head, lips pulling back in not a snarl but a smile, sent chills down Ezekiel’s spine. The hand clutching the hunting knife was shaking and still Ezekiel stood petrified.

The beast sunk down to all fours, slowly inching its way into the room, eyes set on Ezekiel. It sniffed the air and that’s when Ezekiel noticed the blood on its muzzle. It was then that he was able to finish what he started and continued to scramble out the window.

The wolf would not allow it as it lunged at Ezekiel. Its jaw unhinged, and Ezekiel’s arm was quickly trapped between its razor sharp teeth. He screamed, but his instincts took over and he slashed at the wolf’s muzzle. It snarled, but it drew away from him, back curling in defense. 

Ezekiel fell through his window, hand coming up to clutch at his arm. He ran and ran and ran. He didn’t even feel the tears running down his cheeks until he collapsed in between the roots of a tree. 

After that, Ezekiel kept running. It wasn’t until a few days later that his first change happened. It was brutal. The act of his bones shifting and his skin expanding to accommodate the wolf and its size was a pain Ezekiel had never experienced before. He woke up the next morning with a dead buck next to him and fear and confusion inside of him. 

So he kept running.

He ran but he also adapted.

As time went on, the changes became less painful. He met people, sparingly, that were willing to give him some kind of description of his affliction. Some of them had even not been afraid of him but most were. He had never been invited to stay for too long. 

Ezekiel also had to resort to thievery to take care of himself. For the longest time, he was dead-set against using the wolf’s prey as sustenance, so he figured out another way to get food, water, and any other type of supplies he needed. He figured out that he was quick and that being smaller than most people had its advantages. He traveled from village to village taking what he needed. 

His way of survival was good, if not a bit lonely. 

He never did find anyone like him nor did he find the wolf who had murdered his family, but for the he was grateful. 

And still he continued his trek through the world towards an end he did not know yet.  
~~~  
“And your village just happened to be the next one I came along,” Ezekiel said. His voice was quieter than Jacob had ever heard it, but he understood. Ezekiel’s haunting story still had chills running down Jacob’s spine. “I’ve never hurt anybody though…so that’s one thing I can be proud of.”

Jacob frowned. “What do you mean?”

Ezekiel laughed, but it held none of his usual joy to it. It was harsh and unpleasant. “I’m a coward, Jacob. You heard my story. I ran away. As he killed them, I just sat there, terrified. I didn’t do anything to-.”

“Ezekiel,” Jacob said sternly, sitting up. He reached out and gripped Ezekiel’s hand. He didn’t know why. All he knew as that when Ezekiel had grabbed his, it had made him feel grounded. Maybe it could do the same for him. “Look at me.” Slowly, Ezekiel’s eyes met his. “You are not a coward; you are so far from cowardly that you make me look like some milk maiden who spends all her time churning butter.”

Ezekiel scoffed. “Jacob-.”

“Listen to me,” Jacob cut him off. He squeezed Ezekiel’s hand, and Ezekiel nodded at him, sitting up too. They were so close together. Jacob could practically feel Ezekiel’s tight breathing washing over his cheeks. “You are not a coward. You were fourteen; I wouldn’t have even stood up to my own father at that age, nevertheless a giant beast that had just done what that one did. You are brave for what you did. You are brave for keeping yourself away from others even though I know you would never hurt a soul. You are brave for living by yourself for so long, alone. You are brave because of who you became after that horrible night. You are brave because you did not become like the wolf of that night. Do you hear me?”

Ezekiel’s eyes met his, and they looked so confused, but they were also grateful. There was something else in them and on the soft smile that curled his lips, but Jacob couldn’t tell what it was. Ezekiel slowly nodded. “I hear you…thank you. I-I don’t know what I would’ve done without you to be honest. Meeting you has…it’s changed my entire life.”

Jacob couldn’t resist leaning forward and pressing his forehead against Ezekiel’s. “Hey, mine too. Sure, you can be a little pain in the ass some days.” Ezekiel grinned at that. Jacob’s smile softened. “But you’re also the first person in as long as I can remember that I’ve felt comfortable around. I don’t have to pretend to be a good son, a strong friend, or a brave hunter. With you I can just be myself. I don’t know why it’s you, but I’m glad it is.”

Ezekiel nodded, shifting Jacob’s head a little with his, but he didn’t pull away. “You too. I trust you and…I trust myself with you. I’m not afraid to hurt you because I know I won’t.”

“I know you won’t either.” Jacob squeezed his hand, and Ezekiel squeezed back.

“Thank you, Jacob Stone.”

“Thank you, Ezekiel Jones.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello there. So this is a lot darker than Jacob's past, and I think just as important to understanding Ezekiel as a character (in this universe at least). He's had a long time to mask his pain and sorrows, and he does so quite brilliantly, but his demons still lurk on his shoulders. Maybe Jacob can help lessen his burden though; maybe they can help each other...  
> Look forward to a fluffier piece next time lol; time to get away from the dark.


	5. The Wolf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jacob gets to meet the wolf again.

It took a few months after he’d met him for Ezekiel to agree to let Jacob meet the wolf again. While he knew Jacob trusted him, Ezekiel wasn’t so sure he trusted himself but after constant needling from Jacob, Ezekiel had finally consented. 

Which led to where Jacob was now, sat upon a log watching the beast sniff around the clearing they were breaking in. 

It was odd, looking at him in this form because it so very obviously wasn’t Ezekiel. Other than the species difference, there were others that Jacob found as well that he only could’ve after knowing Ezekiel as a person. The wolf was much more serious than Ezekiel; his eyes were always narrowed and he growled at the minor annoyances like a prickle getting caught on his fur. The wolf was also jumpier than Ezekiel. At every twig break and leaf rustle, his massive head would swing around and his lips would begin to draw back into a snarl.

He also enjoyed the forest more than Ezekiel did. When they had started their nightly excursion, he’d lope away quickly only to return a few moments later with what seemed to be an excited gleam in his eyes. He was also quieter than Ezekiel which had surprised Jacob when he took in the considerable size difference. As they walked through the forest, Jacob had checked around him many times to make sure the wolf was actually still there while Ezekiel could’ve been detected from a mile away with the way he tromped through the forest.

The major comparison between the two was the wolf shared Ezekiel’s desire to be close to Jacob. He never ran off farther than Jacob could see and had even restrained himself from running off after small prey. When Jacob had tripped earlier, the wolf had instantly run over to him, letting Jacob land against his soft side instead of the cold, hard ground.

“So,” Jacob said, startling the wolf out of his pacing. His large head lifted, amber eyes directed at Jacob. It tilted to the side a little, and Jacob had to refrain himself from outwardly calling the gesture cute because he was pretty sure Ezekiel would take over and maul him on the spot. “What do you usually do?”

The wolf seemed to pause at that, and Jacob could actually see he was thinking about Jacob’s question which was a weird expression on an animal. He knew people usually called dogs and even cats as very expressionate animals but neither of them held anything over the wolf.

He suddenly crouched down, his forelegs splayed out against the ground and his hind ones stretched back. His tail was wagging. Jacob frowned. “Play?”

The wolf made a sound that was very close to sounding like a bark, and he even nodded his head. Jacob’s frown deepened. “Play what?”

Suddenly, the wolf’s ears pulled back and a playful gleam flashed through his eyes before he suddenly jumped at Jacob. Jacob cursed, fell over his log, got to his feet, and started running. Behind him, the wolf let out a howl, and Jacob willed his feet to go faster despite the fact it was pointless; the wolf had two legs over him and Jacob wasn’t exactly the quickest person in the world either. 

They’d probably only gotten twenty feet away from the original clearing before finding another. He took two steps into it before his breath was stolen out of him and a giant, fluffy mass was crushing him from above.

Laughing breathily, Jacob pushed against the fur that completely covered him now. Gasping, he said, “Get…off…me…you…furry…piece…of-.”

The wolf jumped off of him and crouched down into a playing position again, his eyes dancing happily. His tail was wagging excitedly, and Jacob, trying to catch his breath, said, “I don’t like you.”

The wolf barked in his face, but he sat down, head resting on his paws and eyes staring straight at Jacob’s. Jacob stared back, still attempting to catch his breath. After a long while, he said, “Thanks.”

The wolf’s face turned down in what could only be described as a frown. It whined, trying its best to convey a question: For what?

Jacob shook his head. “Takin’ care of him. I know you did all those years. And, yeah, it was partly to save your own skin as well but…I don’t think he would’ve made it without somebody. I’m glad he had that…even if it was a wolf.”

The wolf snorted at him and it almost sounded like a laugh. Then he lifted his head only to dip it towards Jacob. Jacob nodded. “And you’ll keep protecting him, right? Because there’s times when I just don’t know how to help people. I’m worried I’ll mess up…it’ll get too much and I’ll run. It’s what I did as a kid. So I need to know that there’s somebody else watching after him if I ruin it.”

Again, the wolf dipped his head towards him. Jacob grinned. “Thanks.” He stretched out his back, already starting to feel sore from being tackled by a werewolf. He glanced at the wolf. “You ready for a hunt? Don’t think I brought you out here just to make a fool of me. I expect to be paid back in full with enough food to last us a winter.”

The wolf jumped to his feet, eyes excited, and took off into the woods.

Jacob easily followed him by the howl he let out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So when I said the next chapter would be fluffier I actually meant FLUFFier.   
> Haha...get it? Because he's a wolf? Wolf's have fur? Fluffy??  
> anyways  
> Thanks so much for reading and expect some more soon!!


	6. Old Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jacob is still harboring a big secret, but Flynn's pretty sure it's no big deal...

“So why are we doing this again?” Ezekiel asked. He was slowly trotting beside Jacob, arms laden with a basket of vegetables. He sounded a little annoyed, but he dutifully stayed by Jacob’s side as they approached the village. Already Jacob could hear the sounds of music and people talking, shouting, and laughing.

“Because I promised I’d come,” Jacob grumbled next to him, carrying a leather sack that held a plucked turkey. He was supposed to deliver it earlier that morning, but he’d gotten distracted by his warm bed and Ezekiel’s soft smile. Then Ezekiel had convinced him they absolutely could not show up without something Ezekiel had contributed in making so they’d spent the rest of the day picking, washing, and preparing vegetables. 

“Why?” Ezekiel asked. They’d walked into the main center of the town to find the villagers dancing and singing, all with smiles on their faces. A small band was set up on a rickety, wooden stage, playing as loud as they could.

Despite the happy atmosphere, Jacob felt his skin crawl. They’d never done things like this where he came from, and it always unsettled him to be around so many people at one time. It was a contributing factor to why he chose to stay in the woods.

He felt Ezekiel inch closer to him, vegetables clutched tightly. Jacob glanced at him and found the same exact nervousness Jacob felt. He understood it too; only a couple months ago these people were ready to pay Jacob for Ezekiel’s head. It was enough to make anybody nervous, even if they didn’t realize the connection between this outsider and the wolf.

He nudged Ezekiel with his elbow. “Don’t worry. We won’t stay long. I’m only expected to make appearances. We should-.”

He was cut off by a hand landing on his shoulder and glanced to his side to find Flynn, smile wide and eyes bright. “You came! I’m so glad you came. It’s been a long while since you’ve come to one of these.” He glanced over Jacob’s shoulder, and his grin grew more. “And you brought Ezekiel! How nice to see you again.”

Ezekiel nodded at him hesitantly. “Uh, you too. Mr. Carsen, right?”

Flynn waved away his words, his other hand reaching to wrap around Jacob’s wrist. “Call me Flynn. Come on, Jacob; Jenkins is waiting for that turkey.”

Flynn dragged Jacob along, and Jacob felt more than saw Ezekiel stick close behind them. He could’ve also sworn he saw Ezekiel glaring at the hand currently wrapped around his wrist before he had been turned around by Flynn. It was probably just his imagination, but still it was…interesting.

Flynn weaved expertly through the crowd, knowing who would give Jacob polite head nods and who would’ve dragged Jacob into a two hour conversation; he avoided those people, thankfully. They eventually arrived in front of the town hall, and Flynn pushed his way inside. When the doors closed behind them, it drowned out the sound pretty well. All Jacob could hear was a fire crackling and soft voices from a room off to his right.

Flynn led the way into that room too, and Jacob found a table laden with food. Off to the side, Cassandra was slicing some fruit and Eve was hovering over her shoulder. Jenkins was near a fire with a skewer waiting for Jacob’s turkey.

Cassandra looked up first, and she smiled sweetly at them. “Well hello, Jacob, Ezekiel. It’s nice to see you two here.”

Jacob nodded to her, relinquishing his turkey to Flynn who brought it over to Jenkins. “Hi, Cass. Baird. Mr. Jenkins.”

“Thank you for this,” Jenkins said, raising the turkey in his direction before putting it over the fire. “We would be lost without you once again, Mr. Stone.”

Jacob felt his face grow warm at the praise but he shrugged. “No problem.” He glanced over his shoulder and grabbed Ezekiel’s shoulder, shoving him forward. “Ezekiel brought vegetables. Where do you want them?”

“I’ll take them,” Eve said quickly, walking around the table. When she got close enough, she muttered to Jacob, “She treats this kitchen just as she treats her healing place. No one is allowed to do anything unless she’s there to supervise.”

Jacob snorted. “That doesn’t surprise me in the slightest.”

Eve grinned at him and took the basket from Ezekiel. She nodded to him. “Thank you very much. How’re the puppies doing?”

“Uh,” Ezekiel choked, glancing at Jacob with a pleading look. “They’re, uh, fine. Strong…healthy.”

Cassandra looked up in bewilderment. “You talk?”

Flynn glanced at Jacob, eyebrow raising. “The pups came back?”

Jacob clapped his hands together loudly and nearly shouted, “Jenkins, how long do you think that turkey’s gonna take?”

Jenkins glanced up, his expression one of amusement. “Oh, probably long enough to get some things sorted out, Mr. Stone. Don’t you think?”

Jacob gave him a forced laugh. “You’re always a funny one, Mr. Jenkins.” He grabbed Ezekiel’s forearm and said, “Actually, I have to go give Ezekiel here a tour. So we’ll, uh, do that now-.”

“Would you like a tour guide?” Flynn asked. “I’m pretty sure I know this place better than you do, Jacob.”

Eve stepped up as well. “Me too. I’m pretty sure I won’t be doing much else here anyways.”

“Right,” Jacob said, glancing at Ezekiel. He didn’t say anything, just kept casting unwelcome glances Flynn’s way. “Of course. Why not, right? Let’s go.”

So Jacob spent the next hour wandering around the town, staying away from the center and people as much as possible, and let Flynn and Eve share facts about the different buildings as they walked. Ezekiel stuck close to him, but he kept a little bickering argument with Eve who seemed to be warming up to him pretty quickly. He still seemed distrustful with Flynn, and Jacob noticed him still glaring at Flynn every now and then.  
~~~  
They were returning back to town hall, and Eve and Ezekiel got a little ahead of them, Ezekiel telling Eve a story that Jacob wasn’t really sure was true or not. Flynn strolled next to him, staring up ahead at them. “He doesn’t like me very much.”

Jacob glanced at him. “What? Sure he does…he’s just a little wary. New faces, new place. He’s not used to this kind of stuff. It’s why he lives with me, out in the forest.”

Flynn glanced right back at him, the side of his mouth lifting into a smile. “Look, Jacob, I get it. My friendship with you is…unconventional. I’m one of the more eccentric people that even I know, and we both know I don’t follow the normal boundaries of other people. He’s probably not used to you talking with many other people than him or letting them hang all over you, much like I do. But you should let him know he has nothing to worry about.”

“Worry about?” Jacob frowned. “What are you talking about, Flynn?”

Flynn shrugged, but his eyes looked a little wistful. “You remember, don’t kid me. My feelings for you as a boy were…well, a bit embarrassing to be honest. I acted like a downright fool when I first met you. And for the few weeks that followed. I mean, you were very understanding and you did not shame me for it, for which I’m still quite grateful for, but nonetheless, it was awkward.” He glanced at Jacob and realized he’d lost him a bit and shook his head. “My point being that those feelings were a long time ago, and now I’d like nothing more to be your friend and only your friend.”

Jacob, suddenly catching on to what Flynn was saying, barked out a laugh. When Flynn glanced at him, bewildered, Jacob just shook his head. “Ezekiel does not harbor those types of feelings for me, Flynn. Though I am flattered you think he would.” He sighed a little, glancing up to where Ezekiel was dancing around Eve, who was swiping at him because of something he probably said. He was laughing so loud that some nearby people were turning their heads to look at him. Jacob grinned softly. “No, he couldn’t. We just don’t…fit.”

Flynn snorted next to him. “If you think you two don’t fit, then you obviously don’t know the correct definition of the word. If you’d like, I can recite it for you-.”

“Flynn,” Jacob said, grinning and shaking his head, “that’s not what I meant. Sure, we get along, but someday I’d mess it up or…” His voice grew quieter, his eyes darting down. “I wouldn’t be able to give him the things he wanted. For one, I don’t want to leave. I’m not leaving this place. If he wanted to move, I wouldn’t. I love it here so much. And for another…”

Flynn nodded. “I know.” He reached out, wrapping an arm around Jacob’s shoulders. “But he might understand, Jacob. What you have is not a sickness, as your friends from your past led you to believe. It is who you are. It’s nothing to be ashamed of. And, if he truly does feel for you, it won’t matter.”

Jacob shrugged but not hard enough to dislodge Flynn’s arm. “I dunno. It’s too important to most people. Isn’t it what makes a relationship fun and adventurous?” Jacob laughed lightly, shaking his head. “I guess it would make any relationship with me dull and boring.”

Flynn sighed, squeezing Jacob’s shoulder. “Jacob, as I am your friend, I’m going to tell you this bluntly.” He took a deep, dramatic breath before saying, “Sex is not a necessity to each and every relationship. Just because you don’t desire it doesn’t mean you are allowed to continuously deny something that would make you happy. And that boy up there is very much indeed interested in you just as much as you are him. Are you going to let something you don’t even know where he stands on ruin that?”

Flynn slipped his arm away from Jacob, shrugged to him, and jogged a little to catch up to where Eve practically had Ezekiel in a headlock. He was still grinning and laughing, and it made Jacob’s chest hurt. 

He didn’t know the true extent to his feelings for Ezekiel. He didn’t know how he would tell him. He didn’t even know if Ezekiel would ever want to speak with him again. It was the way his old friends had reacted, and Jacob had expected the worse when he’d told Flynn all those years ago. 

But, then, Flynn hadn’t rejected him. Flynn had stayed his friend and helped him figure himself out. 

And Flynn was right too.

He wouldn’t let it ruin whatever the hell he had with Ezekiel.

And it put a smile on his face as he ran to catch up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there! So, I'll be honest, I was a bit nervous while posting this because I don't know how people are gonna react and, to be honest, I'm worried about a little negativity. This started as a simple chapter of friends and fun, but it ended up being something that I wasn't sure how to address but knew I eventually wanted to for this particular story. Now it has been. I thank you for an open mind and leave your rude prejudices at the door, please. It's as simple as, don't like it, don't read it.
> 
> In other words: jake is ace af lmao bye


	7. The Beginning of the End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jacob spends a day in the village when ghosts of his past begin to show up...

“You sure you’re going to be okay here by yourself for the day?” Jacob asked, slinging a sack of tools over his shoulder. He’d been enlisted to help build a few more cabins in the village, and Ezekiel had refused to tag along because he ‘had better things to do.’

Ezekiel glanced up at him and rolled his eyes. “Just go, Jacob. I’ll be here when you get back.” He then added, “Don’t break yourself or something.”

Jacob snorted. “Yeah, thanks. I’ll see you later, okay?”

“Mm-hm,” Ezekiel hummed at him, nodding his head. He was bent over a plant, prodding at it in investigation. 

“You know where to come get me if something happens, right?” Jacob asked, beginning to walk away.

“Yeah. All I have to do is follow Flynn’s loud voice throwing compliments at you and there you’ll be,” Ezekiel said. His voice was light as he said it, but his lips were drawn down into a frown.

“I’ll be back home before sunset, just so you know.” He threw Ezekiel a wink over his shoulder. “Just in case you wanna cook me a meal after my long day of work.” 

Ezekiel snorted. “Yeah, you wish.”

~~~

The rest of Jacob’s day was long and hard. He and Eve along with a few other hardworking men and women of the village all worked together to build five new homes. Jacob and Eve had been assigned to one all by themselves, and they were making decent progress on it by time the sun was directly above them in the sky. 

They were taking a break, sitting in front of the skeleton of the house in the shade of a nearby building. Cassandra was with them, having brought them some food and drink, and was weaving flowers together idly, glancing around at the half-built houses with joy. She sighed happily. “I always love this time of the year. It always means inviting new people to our little town.” She glanced at Jacob. “Maybe you and Ezekiel can take up one of these homes and get out of that dark forest.”

Jacob chuckled, but he was shaking his head. “That’s sweet of you, Cassandra, but we enjoy it out there. It’s quiet. Plus, Ezekiel has his garden and I have my hunting. We’d be bored living here.” He paused and then ran a hand through his hair, grinning a bit awkwardly. “Uh, no offense intended.”

Cassandra shook her head. She held out her circlet of flowers to Eve, and Eve, sighing a little, begrudgingly placed the small crown atop her head. “It’s alright. I understand. I think if I didn’t have my apothecary shop, I’d be quite bored here as well.”

Eve nodded, taking a loud bite from an apple. “If Jenkins didn’t allow me to keep things in line around here, I’d be bored too. Luckily Dulaque’s kids, Lamia and James, like to cause trouble.” She snorted. “The other day they tricked Flynn to climb to the top of his roof. The man couldn’t get down because he’s afraid of heights. I quickly found the two afterwards because they were hiding behind their house, laughing louder than Flynn was screaming.”

“Still,” Cassandra said, turning back towards Jacob. She had started to weave more flowers, and Jacob feared this one was for him. “I wish you’d visit us more. You’ve been coming around more recently, yes, but it’s still not as much as I’d like to see you. I’m sure Flynn and Mr. Jenkins feel the same way. Plus we want to see more of Ezekiel as well.”

“Yeah,” Eve said, nodding a little, “I really like that kid. He’s a heck of a liar but at least he’s funny.” She grinned at Jacob. “He says he can talk to wild animals. Well, I guess that’s not true. He really said he can talk to wolves. Can you believe that?”

Jacob felt his eyes go a little wide, but he forced a laugh and shook his head at Eve. “He really said that? He’s always making up stuff. He’s a real story teller, that one.”

“Ironic,” Cassandra said, leaning towards him and placing the newly made flower circlet atop his head. Jacob sighed, but he let it stay there. “Coming from the man who once claimed him mute.”

Jacob’s face went warm, and he knew he was blushing. “Well, that was…different.”

Eve smirked at him. “Oh, I’m sure it was. Just like-.”

She was cut off by Flynn racing towards them. When Jacob saw him, he smiled, but it quickly went away when he noticed the panic on Flynn’s face. When he reached them, he was out of breath and saying, “Eve, tell the villager’s to go to their homes. Jacob, come with me. We have trouble; Jenkins is waiting for us.”

Eve instantly jumped into action with Cassandra following her, looking worried. Jacob got to his feet as well and followed Flynn into the center of town.

Like Flynn had said, Jenkins was standing there, waiting for them. He had a stony expression on his face, and when Jacob saw why, he felt his knees nearly buckle out from beneath him. 

Standing not twenty feet away from them near the entrance of the town from the road stood Jacob’s father. Surrounding him where men Jacob knew; a few were his cousins and the rest old friends. When they saw Jacob, each and every one of them frowned. Their hands clenched around their weapons: crossbows, some daggers, and what even appeared to be a rifle but how they managed to get the money to afford such a high-tech weapon, Jacob didn’t know. Jacob’s father stepped forward, a scowl on his face.

“I’m lookin’ for the leader of this town.” Isaac’s voice was just as hard and devoid of any kind of emotion as Jacob remembered it. He wasn’t even looking at Jacob and instead kept his eyes on Jenkins, occasionally darting around the empty town with interest. 

“You’re speaking to him,” Jenkins replied. His voice was carefully controlled, but Jacob could hear a dull fire beneath it, ready to leap out and scorch anybody who dared to test him. “And, might I say, I don’t appreciate the way you entered my home with your weapons and fear.”

Isaac shrugged at him, beginning to stroll around. Behind him, his group of men began to spread out. “Well, you see, I’m not one to announce my arrival before I make it. I enjoy more of a…show up and take what we want kind of routine.”

Jenkins stood up taller, his jaw twitching. “I’m not sure I like the sound of that.”

Even from his distance, Jacob could see the way Isaac’s face pulled into a cold sneer, lips turning up into a nasty smirk. “I’m not surprised; most folks don’t like it. But, then again, I’m not askin’ you to. I’m only here for one thing and then we’ll make our way out of here.”

“And what would that be?” Jenkins asked coldly.

Now Isaac looked at Jacob, and Jacob had to resist to urge to flinch away from his hard stare. “My bastard son.” He looked back at Jenkins, and his face broke out into a slimy smile. “Y’see, that there boy belongs to me. I’ve been lookin’ for him for quite some time now. My friends here.” He gestured all around him. “Well, they were mighty close to Jake until one day he betrayed them. They don’t take too well to traitors. So, I promised them we’d find him.” The smile fell off his face, and all Jacob could find was hatred. “And give him the punishment he rightly deserves.” 

“Well,” Jenkins said and still his voice was calm and steady. His face held no clue as to how he felt about the whole situation. “I’m sorry to hear that. You sound like you’ve been on quite the journey, looking for him. I’ve heard news of nearby villages; they’ve been pillaged, scavenged, and then burned to the ground. Would you have something to do with that?”

Isaac shrugged, his cold expression of hatred still intact. “Well, when my boys don’t get what they want, they get a little annoyed.”

Jenkins nodded. “Of course.” He then unsheathed the old sword that always hung at his side, brandishing it elegantly. Jacob had never actually seen it before, but the way Jenkins held it as comfortably as he wore the shirt on his back assured him that it had once been well-used. “You’ll have to tell them they’re going to be very annoyed again because unless this one wants to leave with you, I’m not going to let you touch him. Is that understood?”

Isaac eyed Jenkins for a long time. He looked didn’t look wary, but he didn’t look confident either. He eventually grinned, shaking his head and lifting his hands in a placating gesture. “Well, we might not have to take it to that, hm? Let’s see what the son of a bitch has to say.” He glanced at Jacob, his sneer quickly returning. “What will it be, Jake?”

Jacob glanced nervously at Jenkins, but the man refused to look at him. He glanced around at the men who had slowly surrounded them, all with their weapons held tightly. He glanced at his father and found the exact same man who had terrified him as a child. He glanced around the town as well, but his eyes stopped on a particular house.

Two children stood in their window, eyes peeking out from behind the curtains. They looked absolutely terrified, and Jacob knew, deep down, that he felt the same way. He didn’t stand a chance against his father or his men. He knew the smart thing to do would be to surrender; he should go with them and accept their punishments. It would probably mean his death, but he’d accepted a long time ago that his end would probably come from the hands of the man that stood before him. 

But then he thought of Jenkins, standing next to him with a brave look on his face, sword still pointed towards Isaac. He thought of Flynn with his crazy grin and wild hair, trying in vain to let Jacob teach him how to hold a crossbow; Jacob almost laughed out loud then and there thinking about how the shock of the arrow firing had nearly knocked Flynn onto his ass.

He thought of Eve and her constant, strong and steady support always making him feel welcome whenever he visited the town. He remembered the first time she’d come to ask him for help, lamely admitting that she could shoot a crossbow, yes, but shooting it at a running turkey was a whole other matter. He thought of Cassandra and her kind smile; her flower crown still sat atop his head, proving with that alone that he did not belong with the men around him.

He thought of Ezekiel. He thought of Ezekiel’s dangerous grin, soft smile, and loud laugh. He thought of Ezekiel’s warm eyes and the way his nose crinkled every time he so much as giggled. He thought of Ezekiel’s constant presence, always by his side, but never stifling, always comforting. He thought of the wolf. He remembered the way it could go from strong, borderline scary beast to happy, playful puppy in the blink of the eye. And it was just so plainly Ezekiel that it made his chest ache just thinking about it. 

He knew he couldn’t give in. He had too many people counting on him. He couldn’t let them down; he’d promised Ezekiel he’d be home by sunset. 

He stepped forward, face hard and fists clenching at his sides. His father’s face pulled into a grin, but it wasn’t happy; it was sinister. Jacob took a deep breath and said, “Leave.”

“You son of a bitch,” Isaac growled. He his hand then lifted to reveal a small pistol he’d been hiding the entire time. He aimed it steadily at Jacob. 

Behind Jacob, the wolf emerged from the forest. His lips were drawn back into a snarl, and Jacob could hear him growling before he saw him. He felt the wolf’s soft fur brush against his side, and he couldn’t help but feel comforted by it.

A shot rang out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everybody! This chapter was Heavily inspired by the ideas of queerseth(tumblr)/SnorkleShit(ao3) and if you don't know who that is, you should definitely go check her out! Honestly, if you're a fan of the show, you should be a fan of her because her works and content for this fandom are spectacular!!
> 
> Also, if you ever wanna talk to me about this piece, others, the show, or just in general, my tumblr is always open!! I go by the same exact name over there as I do here, so if you wanna check me out, hamelott is the place to go! I also do requests if that's something you're interested in seeing. 
> 
> Stay tuned for an Ezekiel POV for the next chapter!!


	8. Too Late

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A wolf protects his pack.

“You sure you’re going to be okay here by yourself for the day?”

Ezekiel was bent over one of his tulip flowers, checking the ground around it carefully. He glanced up at Jacob and rolled his eyes a little. “Just go, Jacob. I’ll be here when you get back.” He looked back at the flower and then paused for a moment before he smirked to himself and said, “Don’t break yourself or something.”

He heard Jacob snort above him before he said, “Yeah, thanks. I’ll see you later, okay?”

Ezekiel just hummed a little bit at him, nodding his head. Jacob was going to the village in order to…build houses? Maybe? Ezekiel hadn’t really been listening because whenever Jacob talked about the village, Ezekiel’s mind went straight to Flynn and it made him feel antsy and maybe even like growling a little bit. Which, he rationed, wasn’t too odd given his…situation.

Ezekiel heard Jacob’s feet begin to shuffle away from him, but Jacob still asked, “You know where to come get me if something happens, right?”

“Yeah. All I have to do is follow Flynn’s loud voice throwing compliments at you and there you’ll be,” Ezekiel said. He tried to keep his voice light and jokey, but it came out a little wrong and he could do nothing with the frown on his lips. 

“I’ll be back home before sunset, just so you know,” Jacob said, and Ezekiel could hear the smile in his voice when he added, “Just in case you wanna cook me a meal after my long day of work.” 

Ezekiel laughed after him. “Yeah, you wish.”  
~~~  
When the sun was resting dutifully straight above him, Ezekiel started to feel nervous. 

It wasn’t a particularly foreign feeling to him, but he was quick to realize it wasn’t really him feeling it; it was the wolf. 

Ever since Ezekiel had been bitten, his mind and emotions had been in constant fluctuation between what he felt and what the wolf felt. Over the years, he’d been able to sort of curb it to feel whatever he actually felt more strongly, but there was one emotion of the wolf’s that he could never shut out: fear. 

And after so long, Ezekiel had learned to trust that fear. Its strength had guided him away from sticky situations, and the lack of it had led him to bountiful ones. The wolf seemed to have some sort of sense of when things were or were not about to go utterly wrong.

For instance, when Ezekiel had been approaching the clearing that had held Jacob’s trap, the wolf had been a nervous mess and for good reason too. But when Ezekiel had been approaching Jacob’s cabin that next morning, despite his own anxieties, the wolf had been utterly calm. It hadn’t resisted Ezekiel in the slightest, and he was eternally grateful that it hadn’t.

But now he felt that unease, and a part of him knew it wasn’t worry for himself; he had a feeling it was worry for Jacob. The wolf was restless and uneasy, straining to get Ezekiel to travel in the direction he’d last seen Jacob going. Ezekiel wasn’t sure if he should really be following the wolf’s guidance if it meant putting himself in danger because he knew Jacob would kill him for ever putting himself in harm’s way, but at the same time, he couldn’t just stand there and let Jacob be in harm’s way either. 

So it didn’t take Ezekiel too long before he decided he would go to the village, and he set out on the fairly well-worn path that Jacob had once showed him.

As Ezekiel approached the village quickly, the unease grew. The wolf was practically bashing itself against Ezekiel, trying to take control. It worried Ezekiel because the wolf had never appeared during the day; it only took over at night and only on certain phases of the moon. He was worried what would happen if he turned during the day. Would he be stuck that way forever? Would he only be able to return to his human form at night? He had too many concerns, but when he was close enough to see the village and a few men circled around Jacob, Jenkins, and Flynn, the wolf had given up on trying to play nice.

Before Ezekiel could even react to the scene he found before him, he felt the change begin to take over him. One second he was human, and the next a wolf, running on all fours with ears and lips drawn back.

As the wolf approached the village, his eyes quickly took in the situation. Jacob was in the middle of the clearing, standing across from a man with something metal and shiny in his hand. Two more friends stood nearby, one with a fearful expression and the other with a sword and bravery on his face. Jacob was surrounded by men. He looked scared, but at the same time, he look prepared.

The wolf could feel Ezekiel’s stomach-turning worry deep inside of him. He needed to push it away because fear was useless in this situation. There was a clear solution to this problem, but the wolf knew it would be risky. So he drug up onto the only other feeling he could find and latched onto it: Protect.

Jacob was his pack. Jacob was his family. Jacob was important to Ezekiel, and that made him important to the wolf. Ezekiel felt for Jacob more strongly than Ezekiel ever had anyone else which meant that Jacob was a key factor to the wolf’s survival, but more than that, Jacob was important to the wolf too. He was strong and brave, even if he wasn’t always aware of it, and he was clever and fierce; if the wolf wasn’t able to detect such things, he would’ve assumed Jacob a wolf himself. 

Jacob had to live. Jacob was too important. 

The wolf jumped into the clearing of the town. His lips were drawn back into a snarl, a growl building up from deep within his chest. He heard the other men around him shout out with alarm, but he ignored them and raced to Jacob’s side. He reached him; he felt them pressed together for a short second.

A shot rang out.

Jacob fell.

He’d been too late.

Ezekiel shattered. 

The wolf lunged at Isaac Stone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well hello there! So, I finished this really early. I know it's a little short, so you'll have to forgive me, but next chapter is gonna be a bit of a doosie so just hang on with me here. 
> 
> Also, I promise this does have a happy ending!
> 
> AFTER all the pain and suffering of course.
> 
> Also, even though it's late and I've almost missed it, happy Valentine's Day!!!


	9. Choices

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jacob and Ezekiel meet the end...

When Jacob hit the ground, he wanted to do nothing more than just lie there. Cassie would be by soon enough to take care of him. Jenkins would watch over him to make sure he didn’t bleed out too much. Ezekiel would protect him. It was perfect situation. He could rest forever. He was safe. 

But he knew he couldn’t stay there. He could hear his father screaming. He could hear the feet of his followers pounding away. The wolf – Ezekiel – was going to tear him to shreds. 

Ignoring the pain that practically radiated from his left arm, Jacob shoved himself into a sitting position. He first saw Flynn, bending down next to him, eyes wide and not looking at him. He followed their gaze until he found the wolf, hackles raised. He was snarling, standing directly over Isaac on the ground who was trying, in vain, to scramble away from the wolf. 

The wolf reared back his head, teeth sharp and showing. Jacob scrabbled forward, shouting, “Ezekiel, don’t!”

The wolf tensed, but he didn’t back away. Isaac stopped moving, wide eyes turning to his son. His chest was raising and lowering sporadically, and his entire body was shaking. Luckily, when the wolf had tackled him to the ground, the gun had been sent flying away. The only protection Isaac Stone had now was the man he had tried to kill – his son.

Jacob, wincing and gasping, struggled to get to his feet. His hand came to press against his arm, finding it slick with blood – his own blood. He grit his teeth through the pain and stumbled towards them. “Ezekiel, please, stop. You need to stop. I’m okay. You did it. You saved me. Let him go.”

The wolf barked angry and loud. It made Isaac flinch away from him. Jacob understood what it meant: Why?

“Ezekiel,” Jacob said, and he didn’t mean for his voice to sound as strained and tired as it did. “He’s not worth this. He’s not worth any of this. He’s a damned coward, and he’s not worth you breaking your promise for. You told me you weren’t like that other wolf, and I know it’s true. So prove it to the rest of these people. Prove it to yourself.”

The wolf was still tense. His body was shaking with his anger, still growling deeply from his chest. He slowly raised his head, his amber eyes meeting Jacob’s, and they quickly flashed to a warm, dark brown. The wolf shook his head, revealing them as amber once more, but it had been enough. 

Ezekiel was no killer so neither was the wolf.

Growling, he stepped away from Isaac. He barked at him one last time, teeth snapping only inches away from his face. Isaac yelped and dragged himself quickly from the wolf, jumping to his feet. He turned to run away before he stopped himself, turning back to face his son.

When their eyes met, Jacob felt his heart stop. What now? He’d saved him, but Isaac had never expected him to. They both know he wouldn’t have done the same had their roles been switched. And, weirdly, that made Jacob feel good. He wasn’t his father, and he never would be. Letting Ezekiel kill him would’ve been stooping down to his level; it was a level Jacob had feared for so long was inevitable for him. His entire life he had feared he would become the man his father was, but now he didn’t need to worry about it. They were completely different people. 

“This doesn’t change anything,” Isaac spat. His hands were clenched at his sides. 

But it did. It made Jacob feel braver than he ever had before in his entire life.

He nodded curtly. “Get out of here. Forever. Leave this place, and any other place that you’ve caused pain. Leave and don’t ever come back. If you do, I won’t be so merciful.”

The wolf snarled by his side, helping to prove his point. Isaac’s face flashed fear before he got it under his control. He met Jacob’s eyes and stood there for a long time. Eventually, he nodded and turned around and left. Left the village, left his men, and left Jacob’s life…forever.

Jacob turned and took a step forward, only to have his knees buckle beneath him. It was then he noticed the blood that surrounded him, that was still seeping through the hole in his arm and soaked his clothes. He felt sick.

The wolf whimpered, rushing to his side. His cold nose pressed against Jacob’s neck, and Jacob threw his good arm over the wolf. He sighed. “It’s okay. I’m fine. You did it. Thanks.”

Jenkins stepped forward, his sword gone again, and held out a hand. “C’mon, Mr. Stone. We should get that looked at by Ms. Cillian.”

Jacob glanced up and met his eyes. His face hardened as he said, “He comes with me.”

Jenkins surprised him by smirking. “Well, of course. I wouldn’t dream of separating the two of you. Come along, Mr. Jones. I’m sure Jacob would appreciate your assistance in helping him to stand.”  
~~~  
When Cassandra saw his arm, her face went white and she began muttering, “This is not good. This is not good at all.” 

She ushered him forward into the room, directing him to a tabletop to hop up on. She ordered him to take off his shirt and began investigating the wound. The entire time she was biting her lip and shaking her head, eyes filled with worry.

Around them, Jenkins, Flynn, Ezekiel still a wolf, and eventually Eve, crowded into the room. Eve had assured Jacob that the town was safe, and she had instructed some of the villagers to make sure none of Isaac’s men were sticking around. As far as she could tell, Isaac himself was long gone.

Cassandra eventually stepped back. She met Jacob’s eyes. “This is bad. I don’t know how to fix this with anything that I have.”

The wolf growled lightly, and Cassandra glanced at him. Slowly, her eyes lost their worry, and she said, “But I know something that will help.” She turned back to Jacob, biting her lip again. “Do you trust me?”

Jacob nodded. “Of course. Do what you need to, Cass.”

She nodded swiftly at him and stepped close again. She lifted her hands over the wound and took a deep breath. She closed her eyes, and then her hands began to glow.

Jacob’s eyes widened and fixed on the golden tendrils of something that slowly encircled his arm. They gave off a warm and comforting energy. The snaked up and down his arm, pulsating stronger every so often as Jacob’s wound began to close right in front of their eyes. Cassandra continued the process until all that was left was a rough looking scar. 

The gold tendrils slowly dissipated as Cassandra stepped back, slightly out of breath and sweating. She screwing her face up in a guilty expression. “Sorry. I’m a little out of practice.”

“W-what about the bullet?” Jacob stammered, hand reaching up to brush against the scar. It felt a little sore and off, but it was nothing compared to the pain he had been experiencing earlier.

Cassandra raised a folded hand and opened it, revealing the small, metal ball. It was a little wet still, and she tossed it into a nearby dish. She grinned at him, resting a gentle hand on his shoulder. “All better.” She paused, glancing down. “Thank you.”

Jacob bent his own head until he caught her eyes. He hoped she knew how much he meant it when he said, “No, Cassandra. Thank you.”

“Well,” Eve said, standing back. Her arms were crossed over her chest, but she had an impressed look on her face. “Anybody else have secret powers they want to come clean about?”

Jacob glanced around at them. Flynn, slightly grinning in wonder, just shook his head. When Jacob meant Jenkins’s eyes, he winked swiftly at him before saying, “Well, now that Mr. Stone is better, I’m sure he and Mr. Jones are wanting to get back home. Do you think that is quite alright, Ms. Cillian?”

She nodded swiftly. “Of course!” She turned back to Jacob. “Just make sure you take it easy, okay? Your body will be a little confused for a few days, so you shouldn’t do any strenuous work.” She glanced to where the wolf was staring intently at Jacob. “I’m sure he’ll make sure that that’s followed appropriately.” 

“Thanks, Cass,” he glanced around at all of them. “Thank you all. We’ll be back soon. I promise.”

Jenkins smiled. “We’re all very glad to hear that, Jacob.”  
~~~  
As soon as they stepped foot in the clearing around Jacob’s cabin, Ezekiel changed back. He groaned on the ground, clothes ripped up and body probably feeling sore, but he quickly stood up, turned towards Jacob, and wrapped his arms around him.

Jacob quickly returned the embrace, and when he felt Ezekiel start to tremble against him, he clutched him tighter. In the quiet forest, he whispered, “It’s okay. I’m okay. You saved me. I’m safe. We’re safe. We’re okay.”

Ezekiel shook his head against his shoulder, breath unsteady. “I almost lost you. That was way too close.”

“But you didn’t,” Jacob insisted. “I’m safe now.”

Ezekiel pulled away, and Jacob found tears pooling up in his eyes. He reached up to wipe away the one traitor that was trailing its way down his cheek. He met Ezekiel’s eyes and murmured, “I promise I’m okay. You did it.” He suddenly frowned. “But how did you do it? How did you know I was in trouble?”

Ezekiel shrugged. “The wolf told me.”

“How did he know?” Jacob asked, intrigued.

“Because you’re part of our pack,” Ezekiel told him quietly. He reached up to grab the hand that Jacob had left on his cheek and gripped it, leaning into it. “Because it knew I love you.”

Jacob felt his heart stutter, his chest aching. “Ezekiel, I-.”

Ezekiel cut him off by leaning in and pressing their lips together. It was a soft kiss; it was a reassurance for both Ezekiel and Jacob. They were both here, and they were both okay. Jacob breathed through his nose, leaning into the kiss and wrapping his free hand over Ezekiel’s hip.

When Jacob realized what was happening, he forced himself to pull back. He was a little out of breath as he said, “Ezekiel, I can’t-. I don’t-. I won’t-.”

“I know,” Ezekiel interrupted him, shaking his head. He grinned at Jacob, and Jacob almost melted at the look on his face. “I have wolf hearing, remember? I overheard you talking to Flynn that day. I didn’t mean to, but…” He shook his head again, leaning forward to rest his forehead against Jacob’s. “It doesn’t matter. That doesn’t matter to me. What matters is that I love you. I love you so much. I just want you in my life.”

Jacob breathed out a long sigh of relief. “I love you too. So much.”

Ezekiel leaned in again before he paused, frowning. “Is kissing okay?”

Jacob nodded, dislodging their foreheads as he pressed forward the rest of the way. “Kissing is nice. Makes me feel close to you. Soft ones are the best.”

“Noted,” Ezekiel murmured, pressing his lips gently against Jacob’s. Jacob smiled, chuckling softly into the kiss.

The he pulled back, his eyes wide. “Oh no.”

Ezekiel frowned, instantly worried. “What? What’s wrong?”

“The dog’s going to be so jealous of me now,” he said, a grin pulling across his face.

Ezekiel stepped away from him, pushing him hard in the chest. “I wish I could maul you so much right now.”

“What?” Jacob said innocently, laughing as he raced after Ezekiel who was stomping towards the front door. “What’d I say?”

“You’re the worst!” Ezekiel shouted into the forest. A couple nearby birds were startled out of their tree.

“Ezekiel, c’mon,” Jacob called after him, following him into the house. “You know you love me!”

Ezekiel glanced at him. “Yeah…unfortunately.”

Jacob shut the door behind him with his foot and picked Ezekiel up into a big hug. “I love you too.”

Ezekiel smiled, soft and sweet. “Yeah…fortunately.”

Jacob pressed a big, wet kiss against his cheek. Ezekiel’s face scrunched up.

“You’re disgusting.”

“Yeah, well, you’re a werewolf. We’ve both got our weird tendencies.”

“Can’t disagree with you there.”  
~~~  
When Jacob woke up to Ezekiel whimpering and flailing next to him, he was scared. He quickly wrapped his arms around Ezekiel and held him still, whispering sweetly into his ear until Ezekiel slowly woke up from his nightmare. When he realized what had happened, Ezekiel turned around in Jacob’s arms and buried his face into Jacob’s chest.

“I killed him,” Ezekiel was quickly muttering. “I killed him, I’m sorry. You told me not too, but I thought you were dead. I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

Jacob shushed him quietly, rubbing soothing circles into his back. “It’s okay. You didn’t, it’s okay.” When Ezekiel’s breathing had finally slowed down and he hung limply in Jacob’s arms, Jacob took a deep breath before quietly saying, “I kill him too sometimes.”

Ezekiel raised his head until his chin was resting on Jacob’s chest, brown eyes meeting blue. His eyebrow was cocked up a little bit. He whispered, as if it were dangerous to ask, “You do?”

Jacob nodded. “Yeah. He’s either hurtin’ my old friends, or Flynn and them or…you. I don’t have any other choice then. And I’m just so angry, so I do it.”

“Why didn’t you kill him…then?” Ezekiel asked. 

Jacob sighed, shaking his head. “I dunno.” He then shook his head again more sharply. “That’s not true. I know why. Partly because…well, he’s my dad. Despite everything he did and despite how much I hated that man…he was my father.” He glanced down to see Ezekiel frowning at then, and then added, “But that’s not just why. Killing him would’ve only been proving to him that he was right. That I was just like him, and that I’m just as heartless as he is. But…I’m not. I’m not my father.”

Ezekiel nodded. “Yeah, you’re not.”

Jacob squeezed one of Ezekiel’s shoulders with his hands. “And you’re not that wolf. We’re not the people that made us, but we’re the people who we choose to be. We chose to let him live, we chose to protect others instead of hurting them, and we choose every day to be the people we want to be instead of the people everyone else expected us to be.”

Ezekiel nodded again, turning his head to rest his cheek on Jacob’s chest. His arms reached up to wrap around Jacob’s neck. He let out a breath. “I’m glad. I’m glad that I chose to come find you. I’m glad you chose to let me stay. I’m glad we get to choose.”

Jacob smiled softly, pressing a kiss against the top of Ezekiel’s head. “I’m happy too.”

“I love you, Jacob.”

“Love you too, Ezekiel.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I cannot explain to you how tempted I was to end this with "And they lived happily ever after," but just know that it is Heavily implied!!
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed the ending to this story that was just absolutely amazing to write. I've never been too good with wrap-ups so I'm nervous for this being the end chapter, but I know that at least I'm happy with how it ended. 
> 
> This was my first ever long-fic, and I am just so grateful to all the support its gotten - whether it'd be through comments, kudos, or just simply sending me good vibes by enjoying it. So thank you so much to any and everybody who sent a kind word, like, or thought my way! 
> 
> As always, if you have comments, questions, or just nice things to say, I always do my best to reply to comments here and my tumblr (hamelott, the same as this account) is always open!
> 
> Just know, for the future, this story has given me a lot of confidence (something I usually lack in) so get ready for tons of more stuff coming your way from me! Thanks again everybody!


End file.
